Dow Chemical to sell powder coating business

MIDLAND — The Dow Chemical Co. announced today it has signed an agreement to sell its powder coating business to reduce debt.

Dow Chemical reported the transaction is expected to close within the second quarter of 2010. The company said it will use proceeds from the transaction to reduce debt.

“The sale of this business further accelerates Dow's de-leveraging plan and will contribute to Dow's ability to achieve its financial targets ahead of schedule,” said Andrew N. Liveris, Dow chairman and chief executive officer.

The business will be sold to Akzo Nobel N.V., an Amsterdam, Netherlands-based producer of paints and coatings, though full terms of the deal were not
disclosed.

“In addition, this divestiture is part of our ongoing process to sell non-core assets, and we are now on target to yield more than $3.5 billion of gross proceeds from these activities. We will continue our practice of active portfolio management to improve profitability and focus resources on higher growth, higher margin opportunities,” Liveris said.